Arsenal 2-0 Olympiacos
by Layth Yousif
at Ashburton Grove

A LATE strike from substitute Bukayo Saka sealed a Champions League victory for Arsenal on a nervy Islington evening following Gabi Martinelli's early first-half opener.

Mikel Arteta had made six changes from the side that beat Newcastle with two late goals on Sunday, as the Gunners boss underlined his new squad depth.

Arteta’s side made it two wins from two matches in this season’s tournament, following on from their 2-0 victory over Athletic Club in the Bilbao last time out.

The triumph was earned in no little part by the impressive David Raya making a number of saves to keep out the Greek champions, including displaying outstanding athleticism and footwork to keep out Francisco Chiquinho with the save of the season so far, to make it two clean sheets in a row for the north Londoners in this competition.

Yet, the visitors could and should have earned a point at the very least. The frustrated Chiquinho had a goal ruled out for offside, as the Greek champions strove for a leveller.

However, the home side's rearguard defence just about held on, despite Olympiacos having seven shots to four after the interval, even if Arsenal had chances at the other end too.

The superb Martin Odegaard denied by Konstantinos Tzolakis and last-gasp defending, as the Gunners moved up to fifth in the 36-team table to ensure they became the only English side with a 100 per cent record so far.

Speaking after the match, Arteta said: “Very happy with the win and the clean sheet against a very tough opponent.

“We started the game very good, scored the goal, had some big chances that in the Champions League if you don’t put them away after you are going to suffer. Then we had a period in the game where we became a little bit open, we needed a big save from David [Raya] in one action to keep a clean sheet.

“But overall, after we played after three days and the game we had to play in Newcastle, credit to the boys with the way they performed.

“When you have those big chances, you have to put them in the net. We had to dig in very deep to control them and at the end to earn the right to win the game.”